Asap Rocky, or Rakim Mayers as he is actually named, jumped over to the audience bench in the courtroom and hugged Rihanna when the jury's verdict was read out.
Rihanna had been present several times during the trial and sat for the day between Asap Rocky's mother and sister. She cried with relief when she hugged her acquitted boyfriend.
The jury members in the case quickly agreed on an acquittal, after deliberations that took around three hours.
No to Settlement
The 36-year-old star was accused of shooting at his childhood friend Terell Ephron – also known as Asap Relli, with whom he had fallen out – in November 2021.
The shots allegedly grazed Ephron's fingers, and Mayers was therefore charged with aggravated assault with a weapon, on two counts.
Just before the trial, Mayers turned down an offer from the prosecutor of six months' imprisonment plus probation, if he had pleaded guilty to one of the charges.
Mayers, who insisted he was completely innocent, invoked his right not to testify in the trial. The defense argued that he should be fully acquitted and has claimed that the artist fired with blanks and used a replica, a toy pistol.
Wanted to Protect Rihanna
The main hearing in the case has been ongoing since January. The judge in the case handed over the matter to the jury after telling the seven women and five men who had the decision in their hands to disregard Asap Rocky's and Rihanna's celebrity status.
The last day, the couple's two small children RZA, two years old, and one-year-old Riot were also present. The prosecutor John Lewin described it as an attempt to exert undue pressure on the jury.
Asap Rocky's lawyer Joe Tacopina says after the acquittal that the rap star had wanted Rihanna to avoid seeing him in court, but that nothing in the world could keep her away.
I cannot imagine that this has been anything other than a life-changing experience for them, says Tacopina.
